Thinking about starting a business in Mount Vernon, Washington? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Mount Vernon.
Are You Sure You Want to Do This?
Before you get too far along in the process, assess your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Mount Vernon. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
- We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Have a candid conversation with friends and family. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.
Mount Vernon, Washington Demographic Information
Mount Vernon has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Mount Vernon demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Mount Vernon.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
33760 |
| 5-9 Employees |
12096 |
| 10-19 Employees |
8016 |
| 20-49 Employees |
5328 |
| 50-99 Employees |
1680 |
| 100-249 Employees |
624 |
| 250-499 Employees |
192 |
| 500-999 Employees |
48 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Mount Vernon Businesses |
61744 |
As a new Mount Vernon entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Mount Vernon for each business category. By looking at this chart, you can get
a general sense for how much competition there is in the business niche that
you are pursuing.
| Business Type |
# of
Businesses |
| Ambulance Services |
1 |
| Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering |
1 |
| Appliance Repair and Maintenance |
3 |
| Apprenticeship Training |
2 |
| Architectural Services |
4 |
| Art Dealers |
2 |
| Automobile Driving Schools |
1 |
| Automotive Exhaust System Repair |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
2 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
6 |
| Automotive Transmission Repair |
1 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
1 |
| Barber Shops |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
12 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
1 |
| Boat Building |
2 |
| Boat Dealers |
4 |
| Book Stores |
3 |
| Bowling Centers |
1 |
| Breweries |
1 |
| Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills |
1 |
| Building Inspection Services |
1 |
| Business Associations |
4 |
| Cafeterias |
1 |
| Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Car Washes |
4 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Cemeteries and Crematories |
2 |
| Child and Youth Services |
5 |
| Child Day Care Services |
22 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
6 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
1 |
| Collection Agencies |
2 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
1 |
| Commercial Photography |
1 |
| Community Food Services |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
1 |
| Consumer Lending |
2 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities |
1 |
| Convenience Stores |
6 |
| Convention and Trade Show Organizers |
1 |
| Cosmetology and Barber Schools |
1 |
| Couriers |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
2 |
| Crop Harvesting, Primarily by Machine |
1 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
2 |
| Dental Laboratories |
4 |
| Diagnostic Imaging Centers |
3 |
| Diet and Weight Reducing Centers |
1 |
| Direct Life Insurance Carriers |
1 |
| Directory and Mailing List Publishers |
1 |
| Discount Department Stores |
1 |
| Display Advertising |
1 |
| Drafting Services |
3 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
2 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
3 |
| Educational Support Services |
2 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
2 |
| Electrical Contractors |
18 |
| Electronic Shopping |
1 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
3 |
| Engineering Services |
6 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
2 |
| Facilities Support Services |
2 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Family Planning Centers |
1 |
| Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers |
2 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Finfish Fishing |
2 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
5 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
4 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
4 |
| Flooring Contractors |
6 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Food Service Contractors |
2 |
| Framing Contractors |
4 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
31 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
2 |
| Furniture Stores |
5 |
| General Automotive Repair |
15 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
3 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| General Rental Centers |
2 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
7 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
2 |
| Grantmaking Foundations |
1 |
| Graphic Design Services |
3 |
| Hardware Manufacturing |
1 |
| Hardware Stores |
1 |
| Hazardous Waste Collection |
1 |
| Historical Sites |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
2 |
| Home Health Equipment Rental |
1 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
5 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
3 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
18 |
| Internet Service Providers |
3 |
| Investment Advice |
4 |
| Janitorial Services |
5 |
| Jewelry (except Costume) Manufacturing |
1 |
| Jewelry Stores |
3 |
| Land Subdivision |
3 |
| Landscaping Services |
13 |
| Language Schools |
1 |
| Lessors of Other Real Estate Property |
8 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
31 |
| Local Messengers and Local Delivery |
2 |
| Locksmiths |
1 |
| Logging |
3 |
| Machine Shops |
8 |
| Mail-Order Houses |
1 |
| Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers |
6 |
| Marinas |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
5 |
| Masonry Contractors |
6 |
| Meat Markets |
1 |
| Medical Laboratories |
3 |
| Mobile Food Services |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
1 |
| Motor Vehicle Towing |
2 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
1 |
| Museums |
1 |
| Musical Groups and Artists |
2 |
| Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
1 |
| Natural Gas Liquid Extraction |
1 |
| New Car Dealers |
4 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
6 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
3 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
3 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
8 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
11 |
| Offices of Dentists |
24 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
43 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
3 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
10 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
1 |
| Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
2 |
| Paint and Coating Manufacturing |
1 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
3 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
11 |
| Periodical Publishers |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
| Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals |
1 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
6 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
6 |
| Portfolio Management |
3 |
| Poultry Processing |
1 |
| Private Mail Centers |
1 |
| Professional Organizations |
2 |
| Public Relations Agencies |
1 |
| Quick Printing |
2 |
| Radio Stations |
2 |
| Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
6 |
| Recreational Vehicle Dealers |
4 |
| Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage |
1 |
| Remediation Services |
2 |
| Repossession Services |
1 |
| Residential Property Managers |
5 |
| Residential Remodelers |
16 |
| Reupholstery and Furniture Repair |
1 |
| Roofing Contractors |
3 |
| Savings Institutions |
4 |
| Securities Brokerage |
9 |
| Septic Tank and Related Services |
2 |
| Shellfish Fishing |
1 |
| Siding Contractors |
3 |
| Sign Manufacturing |
1 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
9 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
13 |
| Special Needs Transportation |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
6 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
2 |
| Support Activities for Forestry |
2 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
3 |
| Temporary Help Services |
5 |
| Temporary Shelters |
2 |
| Testing Laboratories |
1 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
4 |
| Tire Dealers |
3 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
1 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Translation and Interpretation Services |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
3 |
| Used Car Dealers |
6 |
| Used Household and Office Goods Moving |
5 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
11 |
| Veterinary Services |
9 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
4 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
5 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
6 |
| Wineries |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
3 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Wood Office Furniture Manufacturing |
1 |
Have You Considered Franchising?
As you drive around Mount Vernon, you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. But is franchising the right option for you?
Our recommendation is that you look into purchasing a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Franchising Pros and Cons. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Sample franchise opportunities include Cheeburger Cheeburger Restaurants, Inc. and Chem-Dry Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Carpet Care Franchises and Leisure and Entertainment Franchises.
Note on Mount Vernon Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in Mount Vernon, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.
Do You Need a Business Plan?
A business plan is vital to the health of your new business. Simply put, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
Before you start writing a business plan, we suggest you skim Business Plan Mistakes. You can also get free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Washington.
Marketing Your New Business
Whether your goal is to attract Mount Vernon customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a solid marketing plan.
You can learn quite a bit about marketing on our site. Yellow Pages Advertising Advice is a good read to get your marketing ideas flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.
The Art of Selling
Being able to sell is essential to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Mount Vernon or are selling to customers throughout Washington, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
The key to selling is to set sales goals goals and monitor your progress towards those goals. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Closing Sales offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
Next Steps
You have a dream -- starting a business in Mount Vernon. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Mount Vernon and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Mount Vernon, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Mount Vernon, Washington
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Mount Vernon.
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